PNG Honors ICTA’s Diane Piret With Lifetime Achievement Award

08/14/2014

(Rosemont, Illinois) — Diane Piret, the Industry Affairs Director of the Industry Council For Tangible Assets, has received the 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Professional Numismatists Guild (www.PNGdealers.org).

Piret has been actively involved with numismatics and precious metals for more than 40 years, and has worked with ICTA since 1989 on local, state and federal legislative matters affecting the profession and hobby. She has also been a crusader for dealer education.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented at the PNG’s annual awards banquet on August 4, 2104 in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois. Six other PNG awards and honors also were presented at the banquet to recognize achievements in various areas of the hobby and profession. The awards and recipients are:

Sol Kaplan Award: Louis Don Gouchie, owner of Golden Isles Coins in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Kaplan Award is jointly presented by PNG and the Lewis M. Reagan Foundation and is presented to someone who has helped rid the profession of fraud and thievery. In August 2013, at potentially great risk to his own life, Gouchie assisted local law enforcement officers in the successful apprehension of a man suspected of selling counterfeit American Eagle silver bullion coins at his store in Raleigh and at three other stores in the community.

Robert Friedberg Award: The Whitman Encyclopedia of Obsolete Paper Money, Volumes 1 & 2, by Q. David Bowers. The Friedberg Award is named in honor of a publisher and author of numismatic reference books, and is presented to an author in recognition for an outstanding book or other literature. This award is not automatically given each year, and is only presented when there is deemed to be a worthy recipient or recipients.

Significant Contribution Award: Michael Fuljenz, President of Universal Coin & Bullion in Beaumont, Texas. In recent years Fuljenz has done extensive consumer protection work to alert the public about so-called “hotel buyers” who often pay only pennies on the dollar for rare coins. He also made exceptional efforts on behalf of the profession and PNG in successful efforts with ICTA to combat onerous tax legislation that would have significantly affected retail transactions involving rare coins and bullion coins in Texas, and assisted efforts to enact industry-friendly tax legislation in Louisiana.

Abe Kosoff Founders Award: John A. Feigenbaum, President of David Lawrence Rare Coins in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The Kosoff award is named after PNG’s Founding President who spearheaded the 1953 launch of the organization. It was presented this year to Feigenbaum for his steadfast dedication to the entire numismatic community.

Art Kagin Ambassador Award: Richard Montgomery, President of Numismatic Guaranty Corporation in Sarasota, Florida. The Kagin Award is named after a former PNG President and nationally-known Iowa dealer who provided distinguished service for decades as an advocate of numismatic goodwill.

Numismatic Statesman Award: Steven R. Eichenbaum, CEO of Certified Collectibles Group in Sarasota, Florida. This is a new award category created this year by PNG to recognize continuing efforts to add integrity and confidence to the numismatic marketplace.

The following ten PNG member-dealers were honored for 25 years of PNG membership:

The Professional Numismatists Guild is a nonprofit trade association composed of the country’s top rare coin and paper money dealers who must adhere to a strict Code of Ethics in the buying and selling of numismatic merchandise.

The Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) is a nonprofit organization composed of many of the country's top rare coin and paper money experts who undergo a background check, must adhere to a strict code of ethics in the buying and selling of numismatic items and who guarantee the authenticity of the numismatic merchandise they sell.

PNG Mission:

Ensuring integrity, instilling confidence, and promoting professionalism for the benefit of all numismatic collectors and professionals.